This invention relates to dispensers, vending machines and methods, and particularly to dispensers, vending machines and methods for dispensing tickets from strips in which the tickets are delineated from one another by lines of weakness, such as perforation lines. Preferably, the dispensers are used to dispense xe2x80x9cscratch-offxe2x80x9d or xe2x80x9cinstant-winnerxe2x80x9d lottery tickets.
Various types of machines have been provided for dispensing and vending xe2x80x9cinstant-winnerxe2x80x9d or xe2x80x9cscratch-offxe2x80x9d type-lottery tickets. Such tickets are characterized by being printed in long strips in which each ticket is delineated from the others by perforation lines.
The tickets often are stored in fan-fold form in a vending machine, and are issued in response to the insertion of money by the customer. The tickets are characterized by being printed on relatively heavy stock which is relatively stiff, but still flexible.
In some of the vending machines, the customer tears the tickets off of the strip by pulling on the ticket as it extends from the machine. In other such machines, the machine bursts each ticket apart from the rest and dispenses it separately.
In the type of dispenser in which tickets are burst free from the strip, there are several significant problems.
One of the main problems is that the separating mechanism currently used is relatively large, complex, and expensive to build and maintain.
Another problem with such prior dispensers is that the most common of such dispensers burst each and every ticket free from the strip. This tends to thwart the desires of some customers who would prefer to receive a string of connected tickets.
A further problem is with the loading of tickets into a multi-bin lottery ticket dispensing machine. The service representative usually is required to read certain information off of the tickets in a batch to be loaded into one bin, and load the information into the microprocessor controller of the vending machine by use of a keypad or the like. This is time-consuming, laborious, and error-prone.
Another problem with such systems is that winning tickets usually require verification. Ticket verification usually is performed when the customer carries a winning ticket to a clerk in a store, who then inserts it into a machine which reads the code on the back of the ticket and checks with a central computer to ascertain that the ticket so identified is, indeed, a winner, and to verify the winning amount. When this verification is complete, the holder can be paid the winnings.
Although this procedure minimizes certain kinds of errors and fraud, it does not detect a ticket which has come into the possession of the holder by means other than its actual dispensation from a vending machine.
Another problem with instant-winner gaming tickets is that a relatively large variety of different games are developed in order to keep the ticket buyers"" interest. This creates additional costs for the lottery ticket issuing organization, requires more dispensing bins per vending machine, and/or more vending machines to dispense the multitude of games.
It is another problem with ticket vending systems that they do not provide accounting for all of the tickets dispensed by the vending machines in the system.
Accordingly, it is an object of the present invention to provide a ticket dispenser and vending machine which separates tickets from one another, and yet has a separator mechanism which is relatively simple in construction and operation, and is relatively compact and inexpensive to manufacture and maintain.
In addition, it is an object of the invention to provide such a dispenser and vending machine in which tickets can be issued either singly or in strips of several tickets fastened together, as desired by the customer.
An additional object of the invention is to provide such a separator mechanism which requires relatively low levels of force to be applied to create the separating action.
A further object of the invention is to provide a vending machine and method in which initializing each machine and loading it with tickets requires less time and labor, and is less subject to error.
It also is an object of the invention to provide a lottery ticket dispensing system and method which is less likely to suffer from fraud.
It is another object of the invention to provide a gaming method and apparatus in which a super prize is offered which greatly heightens interest in the games without excessively increasing the cost to the operator.
It is a further object of the invention to provide a lottery ticket vending machine system and method in which every ticket which is sold can be accounted for without undue cost.
In accordance with the present invention, the foregoing objectives are satisfied by the provision of a vending machine with means for issuing a number of tickets corresponding to the amount of monetary exchange provided to the machine by the customer, and in which there is a separator for separating tickets from a ticket strip by bringing a skewed separator member into engagement with the ticket strip adjacent a selected line of weakness. The skewing is such that motion of the strip and the separator member relative to one another tears adjacent tickets apart along the line of weakness at a location which progresses along the line of weakness.
Further, in accordance with the invention, the separating apparatus requires a relatively low level of separating force to be applied to accomplish the separating action. This reduces the wear on the machine components, reduces the energy required for the separating operation, and reduces the cost of the components.
Preferably, the separator member is rotatably mounted on an axis transverse to the direction of motion of the ticket strip, and the most preferable form of the separator member is a dull blade which describes a helix. As the blade is rotated into contact with the strip, first one portion and then laterally-spaced portions of the blade contact the strip, pressing firmly on it and tearing the strip apart along the selected line of weakness.
It also is preferred that a guide be provided to urge the ticket strip into contact with and bend it around the rotary separator so as to stiffen the ticket strip and otherwise facilitate the separation process.
The ticket strip upstream from the separating location is held against movement under pressure from the separator by the ticket guide structure. In addition, a conveyor system is provided to guide the output ticket against the separator and out of the ticket outlet.
In one embodiment, a line-of-weakness or perforation detector is provided to detect each line of weakness (perforation) and use the perforation detections to control the movement of the strip. In particular, movement is controlled so that a selected line of weakness is guided to a separating location, at which position the strip stops, if a separating operation is to be performed.
Preferably, the line of weakness detector bends the ticket strip through a substantial angle and detects the lateral deflection of the strip which occurs when a perforation reaches the point at which the bend is created. This is used to create an electrical signal which then is used to control the drive system and separating mechanism.
The use of a perforation detector makes it possible to accurately and reliably detect the position of the ticket strip without tearing off every ticket from the strip. This makes it possible to issue the tickets in strings as long as the customer pays for.
Alternatively, a leading edge detector can be used to detect the position of the strip, and the position of the next line of weakness for separation can be calculated. Thus, the tickets can be issued either singly or in strings containing multiple tickets.
The vending machine preferably accepts cash or credit cards in payment, or can accept vouchers with bar-coded information which is read by a bar-code reader to cause the machine to issue the proper number and type of tickets.
The foregoing objects also are met by the provision of a dispensing or vending machine and method in which a code reader is provided for every channel or bin of the dispensing machine to read a machine-readable code on each ticket when it is dispensed. The coded information includes a unique identification code which is printed on each ticket to uniquely identify it. The coded information is converted into electrical signals which are stored in the memory of the electrical system of the dispenser, and/or in a central computer to which vending information is transmitted.
Alternatively, each channel of the dispensing or vending machine is identified by a bar code. When loading a new supply of tickets in the channel, a hand-held bar code reader is used to read the bar code for the channel, and the bar codes for both the first and last tickets in the supply loaded into that channel. In this way, the computer receives the information necessary to initialize the dispenser without the need for anyone to key the information in.
When the ticket is presented for payment, the information read from it is compared with that stored in the local and/or central computer. Not only is the identification of the ticket read, together with the information as to whether it is a winner and how much it is entitled to in winnings, but it also is determined whether the ticket has been dispensed by one of the dispensers in the system. If not, then the ticket is not validated for payment.
The code readers also are used in a system and method to easily initialize the operation of each vending machine. When a strip of tickets first is inserted into the machine, it is passed through the code reader, which reads all of the information from the first ticket in the strip necessary to initialize the control system of the machine. This information includes the ticket length, the number of tickets in the batch, the identification numbers of the tickets, the type of game and cost of each ticket, the same information as read in by means of the hand-held wand in the method described above. Since this information need not be read by the service representative and entered on a keypad, less time is required to load the machine, and fewer errors will be made in the loading process.
The objects of the invention also are satisfied by the provision of a gaming method and system in which one or a very limited number of jackpot prizes is provided by the operator of an entire lottery system having many different instant-winner ticket games. A small number, such as one to three tickets, are distributed in various games as jackpot winners.
The jackpot can be a pre-determined amount, or, preferably, it can increase with the sale of each ticket in the system. The code readers are used to detect the sale of each ticket, and the central computer in the ticket system adds a small increment of money to the jackpot every time a ticket is sold until there is a winner. When the code number of a jackpot winner is detected by one of the code readers, this is made known immediately to the winner who bought the ticket, and a signal is sent to stop the further accumulation of money in the jackpot. The jackpot then is started again with a smaller amount.
The smaller amount can be a fixed sum, or it can be determined by accumulating a xe2x80x9cshadowxe2x80x9d jackpot of a smaller sum per ticket sold simultaneously with the accumulation of the main jackpot, and then substituting the xe2x80x9cshadowxe2x80x9d jackpot for the main jackpot when a winner has been detected so as to start the new main jackpot with the total in the xe2x80x9cshadowxe2x80x9d jackpot.
This gaming system and method greatly increases the interest in the game, without adding any new individual games, and without having to add a large prize for each of a large number of games.
Also in accordance with the present invention, the detection of the dispensing of every ticket by use of the code readers makes it possible to improve the accounting of the system by accounting for the sale of each and every ticket. This provides a cross-check to detect theft and fraud, and reduces errors.
The object of making the dispensing mechanism more compact, simpler and less expensive to manufacture is met, in accordance with one aspect of the invention, by using a single separator mechanism for a plurality of side-by-side ticket dispensing channels. For example, by use of this aspect of the invention, instead of four separator motors, only one separator motor is required. It drives a single separator member which spans all of the channels.
The number of drive motors for moving the ticket strips in the side-by-side channels also is reduced to one. The single ticket drive motor operates a single drive shaft with one clutch for each ticket channel to selectively move the ticket strip in a selected channel upon demand.
The single separator member preferably has a helical portion in each channel. The separator is rotated once in order to separate any ticket in position to be separated in any of the four channels.
This mechanism is so much lighter in weight, less complex and more compact than other comparable mechanisms that it can be used advantageously to dispense and separate tickets from counter-top dispensers which normally are operated manually by clerks in stores.
Preferably, each counter-top dispenser has a drive and separator module which is attached to a housing for storing multiple batches of tickets in multiple channels. The drive and separator unit can be attached at either end of the housing, or in the middle of the housing, and can issue tickets in a direction either parallel to the long dimension of the unit, or perpendicular thereto.
Separate dispensing modules can be stacked atop one another on a counter-top to give a larger selection of games to the customer. Alternatively, the modules can be hung from a wall in groups, or they can be stored under a transparent top of a counter in a store, or they can stand upright on one end on the store counter-top, or hung from a rack near the counter, or in other convenient arrangements.
The order to dispense tickets is given to the dispenser by the clerk at a computer terminal, such as one presently used for selling Lotto type tickets, so that the clerk exclusively controls the dispensing of the tickets.
Alternatively, a separate small dispensing control terminal can be provided near each cash register in the store to dispense tickets under the control of the clerk.
As another alternative, separate control module can be supplied together with a group of dispensers attached to a support surface such as a wall to provide for the selection and dispensing of tickets from the dispensers, and the acceptance of payment so as to create a vending machine operated by the customer.